Syfy greenlights ‘Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge’

Syfy has ordered up eight episodes of the reality competition series “Jim Henson”s Creature Shop Challenge.”

The series will find ten aspiring creature creators competing in a number of challenges to build the sort of elaborate, life-like beasts seen in such Henson productions as “Labyrinth,” “Farscape,” and “Dinosaurs.”

The contestants will compete for $100,000 and a contract to work at Creature Shop itself.

Henson’s son, Brian Henson — Chairman of The Jim Henson Company and the Creature Shop — will serve as lead judge on the series, while mentors will include Creature Shop artists Peter Brooke, John Criswell and Julie Zobel.

“As ‘Face Off’ does with SFX makeup application, ‘Jim Henson”s Creature Shop Challenge’ showcases the incredible imagination and artistry of lifelike creature construction,” Syfy exec Mark Stern said in a press release. “We are honored to partner with The Jim Henson Company and Brian Henson on this series. The Creature Shop has set the bar for a caliber of work that is unmatched in quality, design and sheer imagination.”